Ohio State Arrives Ahead Of Schedule

You’re not supposed to be able to reload like this after losing a bushel of NFL talent, replacing sixteen starters in all. You’re not supposed to be able to take a lot of kids on their first plane ride and waltz onto Owen Field and whitewash an Oklahoma team that is more seasoned and has a ton of ability itself. Even Urban Meyer had his concerns:

Urban Meyer on taking young team to Oklahoma early in 2016: “I don’t really have a choice…I wouldn’t say I like it.” pic.twitter.com/23S4WKvpCb

But this is an Ohio State that has recruited with the best of them and seems to have reloaded in earnest.

There is speed to burn, explosive depth, and all-around athleticism that can play with, and beat anyone in the country, even big, bad Alabama (or Clemson, or Louisville).

The defense is outscoring opponents offense, and even punter Cameron Johnston is a cut above almost every other punter in the country.

There are more weapons in Columbus than all the Rambo and Die-Hard movies combined.

Look, there’s still a long way to go. The Buckeyes still must play at Wisconsin and Penn State on the road in back-to-back weeks, must also go to Michigan State later in the year, and then host the biggest of games against arch-rival Michigan on an early and cold December day to finish up the regular season.

That’s a tough road to traverse for any team not playing on Sundays.

But I wouldn’t for one moment count Urban Meyer’s team out. This team is young and will only get better. As scary as that sounds, if the Buckeyes continue to find their identity and begin to get in a rhythm and cadence with its play-calling on offense, and the defense develops to get a little more pressure on the quarterback, then pity will be heaped upon teams dragging themselves on the field against the Scarlet and Gray.

On display tonight was a team that was raw but talented. JT Barrett was making the right reads and providing much needed leadership at the quarterback position, Mike Weber was running with purpose, Curtis Samuel was electric, and Noah Brown established himself as a No. 1 threat in the passing game with an OSU record four touchdown catches including a remarkable one-handed touchdown catch pinned against a defender’s back in the end zone.

There are still things to work on like the kick coverage, and the defense gave up more yards than it would have liked, but Meyer and the rest of the coaching staff have to be over the moon with coming out of Norman in prime-time with a bold and bright statement in the Oklahoma night.

You can bet there will be more as the season wears on because this team seems to have arrived ahead of schedule. Now if it can just stay on schedule with a roster full of youngsters.

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Phil Harrison is a frequent contributor to talking10.com. He is also a featured contributor to collegefootballews.com, the Student Section and occasionally campusinsiders.com. You can follow him on twitter @PhilHarrisonCFB or email him at pharrison28@gmail.com If that doesn’t work, you can find him in the doghouse at home.

Greg Schiano out at Ohio State, Michigan’s Mattison reportedly in

In terms of rivalries, there is no more intense in the Big Ten than Michigan an Ohio State. It’s one that lives on in the fans, players and coaches for 365 days a year.

On Jan. 7, 2019 things got a whole lot more interesting for the next 365 days that’s for sure.

First, news broke that defensive coordinator Greg Schiano will not be back with the Buckeyes under new head coach Ryan Day. Many believed this past season wasn’t up to par for the Buckeyes and Schiano seemed likely to take the fall for that.

OSU finished this season ranked 72nd in total defense after back-to-back seasons in the top 10 of that category nationwide. The Buckeyes gave up over 400 yards of total offense this year as well.

So, who will replace Schiano? In a really interesting twist, multiple reports have come out stating that Day has his replacement ready — in the form of Michigan defensive line coach Greg Mattison.

According to Mike Sullivan of 97.1 The Ticket, Mattison’s contact with Michigan was about to be up and that Harbaugh chose not to renew his deal.

Thus, he is a free agent and Day has chosen to scoop him up.

From what I've heard, Greg Mattison called his defensive linemen yesterday and told them he's leaving to go coach at Ohio State. He had an expiring contract and told them Jim Harbaugh and Don Brown chose not to renew it. He'll be the DC at Ohio State.

Mattison is very familiar with this rivalry, having served as Michigan’s defensive coordinator under Brady Hoke (2011-2014) and then accepting just the defensive line coaching position on Jim Harbaugh’s staff.

His defenses were very consistent in his four seasons as defensive coordinator. Michigan was never worse than 31st in the country in total defense and peaked at No. 6 in his final season at the helm of the Wolverines defense.

Coaches plying their trade on both sides of the rivalry is nothing new, but it is a rarity overall.

Related

BREAKING: Urban Meyer announces retirement

Last week, FootballScoop.com reported that Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer would be stepping down by the end of the 2019 season and likely by the end of this season.

They also reported that Ryan Day would take over as the new head coach once that happened.

After a weekend in which the rest of the media attempted to discredit the report, it is now exactly what is happening.

Doug Lesmerises of Cleveland.com broke the news early this morning. In the report, Lesmerises notes that Meyer is being forced to step down due to complications from a cyst on his brain.

The Rose Bowl game against Pac-12 champion Washington will be the final game he will coach at Ohio State.

Additionally, Ryan Day, who replaced Meyer as interim head coach while he was serving a three-game suspension to start the year will take over as the full-time head coach starting next season.

More information will be made available at a news conference scheduled for 2pm ET.

Meyer has had one of the most successful tenures as a head coach in Buckeyes history. He’ll retire having never lost to Michigan (7-0), won three Big Ten championships and with an 82-9 overall record at the helm of the Scarlet and Gray.

OSU athletic director Gene Smith is the one who decided Day would get the job on a permanent basis, seeing what the Buckeyes did under his leadership in that three-game stint earlier this year and hoping to ride the wave of young coaches making big splashes.

His rise up the coaching ranks comes just as the Buckeyes are putting up some of the most dynamic numbers in the pass game that college football has ever seen.

Star quarterback Dwayne Haskins could potentially top the 5,000-yard and 50 touchdown marks in the upcoming Rose Bowl game.

Related

Talking10 Podcast Episode 100: Something, something Urban Meyer

Ohio State made its decision on Urban Meyer. Andy and Phil are here to break it all down for you and give you the truth in a hazy situation. What better way to celebrate episode 100 of the podcast than to spend 50 minutes breaking down a mess of a situation in Columbus, right?

We’ll talk our reactions to the press conference, break down the actual findings of OSU’s investigative report and we’ll even talk how the media-at-large and the OSU media handled the fallout from Wednesday night’s press conference.

Don’t forget you can listen to the podcast each week via Radio Public and other podcasting apps.

Related

Urban Meyer and OSU AD put on suspension following investigation

The media stakeout of the Ohio State Board of Trustee’s meeting can now end. It only took 12 hours or so, but answers finally came.

According to multiple reports, including from the AP, OSU head coach Urban Meyer is suspended for the first three games of the season. In addition, athletic director Gene Smith will serve the same suspension from Aug. 31 to Sept. 16 — both will not receive pay during that time frame as well.

BREAKING: Ohio State suspends coach Urban Meyer for 3 games along with athletic director for mishandling domestic abuse case. pic.twitter.com/kSGj56mtpB

Both came under fire as this story unfolded. It began just prior to the Big Ten media days in late July, the story that Zach Smith had been arrested for criminal trespassing in April of this year broke and Meyer fired Smith on Monday morning of the start of Big Ten media days.

Brett McMurphy then detailed in an exclusive report that Smith had previously been “arrested” back in 2015 for a second allegation of domestic abuse against his then-wife Courtney Smith.

Meyer was questioned about that arrest and allegation from 2015 at media days and struck out against reporters repeated questioning. He would deny knowing of the arrest report back in 2015.

However, further reporting by McMurphy put that denial in to further question and Ohio State decided to get to the bottom of it.

Once Meyer was put on paid administrative leave, he would put a statement out admitting to knowing about the 2015 incident and alerting athletic administrators of the domestic abuse allegations.

Meyer has stayed silent since that statement and awaited the outcome of the 14-day inquiry in to whom knew what and when and what action was taken.

That investigation ended this past Sunday, with the committee verbally advising the Board of Trustees on Monday morning of its findings. Two days later, the Board of Trustees would come to meet publicly and then behind closed doors to discuss what would happen to Meyer and others involved in this situation.

Meyer’s suspension is for the first three games, and on the field that is a big hit with three FBS games coming at the start of the season. OSU kicks off the year against Oregon State, plays a Big Ten contest against Rutgers and a massive game against TCU at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

We will have more on this situation and the reaction to what Meyer and Smith had to say on the talking10 Podcast tomorrow.